Cisco “Surprised” at Trademark Lawsuit From University

In response to a lawsuit over the use of the phrase “Tomorrow Starts Here” in a marketing campaign, networking giant Cisco Systems says it is “surprised.”

I just received the following statement from a Cisco spokeswoman:

“We were surprised to learn that East Carolina University filed a complaint this morning. Cisco takes intellectual property rights very seriously, and we are confident that our new campaign does not create any confusion in the marketplace.”

ECU registered a trademark on the phrase in August of 2010. In its filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, it claims use of the phrase in connection with “education services in the nature of courses at the university level.”

Cisco registered to use it in December of 2012 for the following purposes:

Proving infringement generally means proving that the use of a trademark hurts the ability of one party who has registered for the right to use it will be compromised or that the marketplace will be confused. While ECU was certainly the first one — two prior trademark registrations, including one dating to 1995 by Time Warner, have been abandoned — Cisco will apparently argue in court that its use of the phrase to sell networking and computing gear shouldn’t be seen as interfering with the university’s ability to recruit students. Of course, that’s assuming the case ever gets that far.

Certainly ECU has the right and the duty to defend against the infringement of trademarks it owns. But here’s another consideration that can’t be discounted: ECU has by luck of the draw found an opportunity to sue one of the richest companies in the world.

Cisco had a combined $45 billion in cash and investments on its balance sheet at the close of its most recent quarter.

Meanwhile, ECU is a state school, and like most state institutions in the country, it’s facing a budget crunch. Chancellor Steve Ballard said the school is facing the “worst budget crisis in its history.” The school ran a $286 million operating loss in the 2011-2012 fiscal year. In 2011 the state of North Carolina cut ECU’s budget by 16 percent.

A successful trademark infringement lawsuit might just help close that budget gap. So would a settlement.

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